Dump-car-door-operating device.



C. H. CLARK.

DUMP CAR DOOR OPERATING DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED APII. I4. 191e.

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DUMP CAR DOOR OPERATING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. I4, I9I6.

-Paented Feb. IL I9I9.

INVENTOFI `3 SHEETS-SHEEI 2.

WITNESS'ES cv. H. CLARK. DUMP CAR DOOR OPERATING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. I4, |916. 1,294,051. Patented 11111.11, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

INVENTOF? @V1 ammi.

WITNESSES CHARLES CLARK, OF GRAFTON, PENNSYLVANIA.

DUMP-CABf-DCOR-OPERATING- DEVICE. i

Applllat'logl filed April 14, 1916. Serial No. 91,030.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. CLARK, a citizen of the United States, and resident of Grafton, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Dump-Car-Door-Operating Devices, of which the followin is a specification.

This invention re ates to certain improve? ments in dump or hopper bottom cars; and the objects and nature of the invention will be readily understood by those skilled in the art in the light of the following explanation of 'the accompanying ldrawings illustrati'ng what I now believe to be the preferred embodiment or mechanical expres-` sion of my invention from among other forms, arrangements and constructions within the spirit and scope thereof.

This invention i-s applicable to ho per bottom cars of the center sill type in w ich the hopper doors are arranged in pairs and are mounted so as to swing toward and from each other in closing and opening hopper discharge openings. The alined doors, on opposite sides of the center sill constituting a pair, are rigidly connected together by a beam which passes below said sill and this invention is particularly directed to mechanism for locking the opposite pairs of doors together in lading'sustaining position independently of the mechanism for moving said doors into open and closed positions. y

The invention contemplates the provision of improved means of holding a pair of doors in closed lading sustaimng position the part of the mechanism carried by each pair of doors and adapted to assume locklng position upon movement of the pairs toward closed position.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a portion of a center sill dump car showing a pair of coperating hopper doors embodying this invention, the full lines showing the doors in closed position and the dotted lines in completely open position. Fi 2 is a horizontal section taken on the p ane of line 2-2, Fig, 3. Fig. 3

is a. vertical cross section taken on the plane ofthe line 3 3 of Fig. 4, and Fig. 4 is a central vertical longitudinal section of a portion of the car taken on line 4 4, Fig. 3.

The car to which this invention is shown applied is provided with vertical side walls 1, a hollow center sill 2 and a pair of hoppers on opposite sides of said sill alined transversely of the car and each having a bottom opening, opposite vertical side plates 3 and 4 and opposite inclined upper bottom or slope plates 5 leading to the bottom of the discharge opening.

The outer vertical hopper walls 4 depend from the outer sides of the car while the inner side walls 3 depend from the center sill. A

The alined bottom discharge openings of these two hoppers are controlled by.two

airs of lcoperating swinging doors hav- 111g lading sustaining or Hoor plates 6 and 7 arranged to close the opening between the vertical walls 3 and 4 and the slopes. 5. These door plates 6 and 7 are oppositely inclined and are in approximate continuation of the -slopes 5. The doors which are arranged to meet or close together at their lower free edges are provided with `rupwardly extending aprons 8 arranged outside of the vertical side walls of the hopper and mounted to swing on transverse studs 9.

The floor plates 6 and 7 of two pairs of alined cooperating doors when in closed position are adapted to lie up against the lower edfres of vertical hopper walls 3 and 4.

The a ined doors on opposite sides of the center sill are connected along their top edges by stifi'ening bars 10`\:;and at their lower edges by stiiening beams or angles 11.

vStiffening bar 10 for one pair of doors, in the space between the hoppers, carries an upwardly extending hanger arm 12 which is mounted to swing on a shaft 13 carried by the sill while a hanger arm 14 fixed to stii'ening bar 10 of the opposite set of doors rises `therefrom and is mounted to swing on a shaft 13 carried in the sill. Arm 14 is extended above its supporting steli:

shaft 13 an equalizing link 15 pivotally connects the upper end of the said eXtension to arm 12 a corresponding distance below its supporting shaft 13 whereby said sets of doors are caused to simultaneously swing a uniform amount and in opposite directions.

Mechanism is provided for swinging the two sets of doors together to closed position and if need be to completely opened position and this mechanism which corresponds in most particulars to the operating mechanism shown in my Patent No. 1,065,217 of June 17, 1913, comprises a rotary shaft 16 carried by one set of doors and extending from one side of the car to the other and having the projecting squared ends 16', and duplicate systems of links and sprockets or crank arms arranged at the sides of the car for drawing said doors together when the shaft is rotated in clockwise direction and for separating said doors when the shaft is rotated in counter clockwise direction. It will be understood that two sets of door operating mechanisms are employed, one for each side of the car. In Fig. 1 but one of such sets can be seen and in this the rotary shaft 16 is shown carried by the right hand door or apron 8 thereof below the oor plate 6. Shaft is connected to shaft 16 by means of a sprocket-like head 18 and pivotally joined connecting links 19, `2O and 21. Link 19, which the longer link, at its outer end, is loosely mounted on shaft :22 while vthe sprocket-like head is fixed to shaft. 1,6 which occupies the same relative position with relation to the right hand set of twin doors as shaft Q2 does to the left hand set, that is each of said shafts is mounted below the Hoor plates and extends across the car from side to side.

Link 19 extends across the ends of two cooperating doors wheu the same are in closed position and beyond shaft 16. rThe end adjacent shaft 16 is bent downwardly and formed to fit in and extend beyond the lsprocket which at this point is formed with a bifurcated or forked projection or nose Q4.

Vifith the doors in open position in order to close the same the short links 20 and 21 are wound around the sprocket. By rotating shaft 16 in the opposite or counter clockwise direct-ion the links are unwound and the doors forced apart. W hen the doors are in full open position the links are in longitudinal alinement with their end shoulders abutting. The curved free ends 21 of the sprocket slidingly engage shoulders or lugs 19 formed on link 19. The. coperation between ends 24- and lugs 19 when shaft 16 is rotated in a counter clockwise direction assists in initially loosening the doors and starting them on their opening movefrozen or otherwise adheres to the door and resists opening movement thereof.

The doors are swung fromk opened to closed position by rotating shaft 16 in a clockwise direction.

By having duplicate systems of links and sprockets, one applied to each end yof,the sets of twin doors, the tendency to twist and bind is reduced to a minimum.

I do not depend upon the door operating mechanism to maintain the doors in closed or lading supporting position but provide independent locking mechanism whereby the operating mechanism is relieved of the lading supporting strains.

This locking mechanism is arranged at the longitudinal center of the car below the center sill in the space between the twin hoppers and is mounted on the members connecting the alined doors whereby the locking mechanism is protected from the lading and shielded from blows and injpry. The mechanism comprises separated parallel suitably stiffened plates 30 carried -by Astructure 11 whichconnects the doors of the right hand set. Plates 30 eXtend from member 11 toward the connecting member of the opposite set of doors and are provided with inclined bearing slots 32 within which a floating keeper or lock bolt 31 is mounted for movement. The corresponding portion of the connecting member 11 of the opposite set of doors is provided with a pair of spaced parallel plates or arms 33 projecting toward the right hand set of doors and at their outer ends provided with a cross shaft 34. upon which a latch member is pivotally mounted. This latch member is formed with two diverging arms 35 and 36 providing a fork and intervening keeper socket or slot and with another arm 37 arranged approxiifnaely at right angles withrespect to the 0l' rlhe brackets or plates 30 and 33 are so arranged that when the doors are in closed position they lap one over the other with the floating keeper or `bolt 31 arranged above shaft 34 in the keeper socket and at the lower ends of its bearing slots.

Shaft 22 carries a locking cam 38 fixed thereto below the center sill and in the same vertical plane as the latch member and this cam is adapted to lock the latch member in locking position by bearing down on the top edge of arm 37 thereof.

ln order to unlock the locking mechanism shaft 22 is rotated counter clockwise and cam 38 therefore lifted from arm 37 and carried around the shaft and caused to strike the lower side of arm 37 whereby the latch member is swung forwardly on its shaft 34. and the keeper or lock bolt released from the latch member allowing the doors to swing open in response to the weight of the lading thereon or if need be the door operating mechanism may be operated toopen the doors.

When the doors are open the latch member will stand in bolt receiving position as shown bydotted lines in F ig. 4. As the doors swing upwardly and toward one another to closing positionvthe keeper or lock bolt engages the top bulged or cam-like edge 36 of `arm 36 and rides upover the same moving in its bearing slots and when the bolt engages larm 35 of the latch member the latch member is swung to the position shown by full lines on Fig. 4 with the keeper or lock bolt directly over shaft 34. After the doors-have been brought together and the latch member and lock bolt are in locking position shaft 22 is rotated in clockwise direction to force cam 38 down on the upper side of arm 37 of the latch member to lock the latch member and lock bolt in position.

The trussing and bracing plates of the doors connecting the st-iffening members 10 and ll are preferably extended along the intervening portions of said members below the sill and between the oppositedoors of each set and these plates between the left hand set of doors are bulged upwardly and downwardly as at 40 in Fig. 4 to house and permit rotation of the cam member 38.

It is evident that various changes, modifi cations, and variations might be resorted to without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, and hence I doA not wish to limit myself to the exact disclosures thereof.

that I claim is:

1. In combination with coperating bottom doors for dump cars, means causing said doors to swing in unison and in opposite directions, means carried by said doors for moving the same to and from closed position, and locking means carried by said doors and including in the make-up thereof a floating lock bolt `and a pivoted latch member.

2. In combination with coperating swinging doors for dump car hopper-s, means for causing said doors to simultaneously swing /in opposite directions to and from closed position and locking mechanism a portion of which is carried by each of said doors including in its make-up a oating bolt and a forked pivot-allyv mounted latch.

3. A; dump car of the longitudinal center sill type provided with coperating oppositely and simultaneously swingable sets of twin doors, the twin doors of each set having rigid connecting members below the car sill, a rotary shaft carried by one set of doors and having accessible ends at bot-h sides of the car and links at the sides of the car from said shaft to the opposite set of doors for swinging the doors to and from closed and open positions, and separable locking mechanism carried by said connecting members of the sets of doors for holding said sets of doors together in closed position independently of said links and shaft.

4. A dump car of the longitudinal center sill type provided with coperating oppositely and simultaneously swingable sets of twin doors, the doors of each set being rigidly connected =by connecting members below said sill, said sets having upwardly extending end arms at the sides of the car and pivotally hung therefrom, arms extending up from said members and pivotally hung within the sill and provided with a connecting equalizing device, mechanism carried by said sets of doors for swinging them together to closed position and apart to dumping position, and separable mechanism carried b v said connecting members for automatically locking said sets together and holding them in closed position.

5. Coperating swinging doors for dump cars provided with means for swinging them Atogether to closed position and apart to dumping position, a forked vertically swingable latch movable with one of said doors, a rotary shaft carried by said door and provided with a cam for locking and unlocking said latch, and a keeper carried by the other door and adapted to engage and swing said latch to locking position.

6. A dump car having a pair of coperating hopper closing doors simultaneously movable in opposite directions to and from hopper dumping and hopper closing positions, one of said doors provided with a keeper, and the other door provided with a pivotally locking latch arranged to be engaged by said keeper on the closing movement of the doors and automatically swung thereby to loc-king position, and latch locking means carried by the door provided with the latch for unlocking the latch to release the keeper-and permit separation thereof From the latch. .Y y

7. A dump car of the longitudinal center sill type provided with opposite sets of cooperating twin hopper bottom doors, the doors of each set provided with rigid connecting members below said sill. the connecting member of one set having a pair of lateral brackets provided with a cross axis, and

a vertically swingable locking latch carried by said axis, the connecting member of the other set having a pair of lateral brackets having elongated bearing slots, and a floating keeper shaft in said slots and adapted to coperate with said latch, substantially as described.

8. Coperating oppositely and simultaneously swingable hopper bottom doors for dump cars, rotary shafts carried by said doors, one of said shafts having a sprocket and a link connection from said sprocket to and loosely coupled to theshaft mounted in the other door for swinging said doors opened and closed, and mechanism carried by said doors for automatically locking the same in closed position and for holding them 10 closed and comprising a locking mechanism locking and tripping cam carried by said shaft to which said link connection is loosely coupled.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

CHARLES H. CLARK Witnesses J. M. NESBIT, E. B. MOLTER'. 

